Author: Antonino Alì

The Financial Times recently reported that the European Commission has begun setting up a new intelligence coordination unit under President Ursula von der Leyen, in what could become one of the most politically sensitive moves of her second term. The new body—hosted within the Commission’s Secretariat-General—aims to improve how Brussels gathers and uses intelligence collected by national spy agencies (“The European
Continue reading Europe’s Intelligence Ambitions: Von der Leyen’s New Unit and the Quest for Strategic Autonomy

How Russia learned from failure When Russian troops crossed into Ukraine in February 2022, many expected a swift victory—a demonstration of Moscow’s power and a humiliation for Kyiv. Within weeks, that illusion collapsed. The invasion turned into a series of humiliations for the Kremlin: broken logistics, mass desertions, and a military doctrine unprepared for modern,
Continue reading How Russia learned from failure

In the increasingly complex landscape of international law, strategic litigation has emerged as both a tool for individual justice and a catalyst for systemic change. The workshop “Strategic Litigation in International Law”, hosted by the University of Trento’s Faculty of Law on 27–28 November 2025, offers a unique opportunity to explore this practice through three central dimensions: concepts,
Continue reading Workshop “Strategic Litigation in International Law: Concepts, Actors, and Impact” – 27–28 November 2025 – Faculty of Law, University of Trento

In the traditional world of machine learning, data has always been the raw fuel. Corporations, research organisations and governments collect it, centralise it and feed it into models that learn to recognise patterns, predict outcomes and make decisions. But what if the data could stay where it is—on your phone, in a hospital, on a
Continue reading Federated Learning: the quiet revolution in machine intelligence

1.0 Introduction: the business and regulatory imperative for geolocation The enforcement of region-specific regulations and content policies is a primary operational challenge for global online services. These services must reliably determine a user’s geographical location to tailor content and ensure compliance, but must do so without resorting to intrusive methods like GPS or Wi-Fi scanning,
Continue reading IP address geolocation: mechanisms, applications, and limitations

1. Context and relevance The ferry MS Estonia sank on 28 September 1994 in the Baltic Sea, with approximately 852 casualties.  The States of Estonia, Finland and Sweden signed on 23 February 1995 the “Agreement regarding the MS Estonia” which designates the wreck as a “final place of rest” and prohibits diving or salvage activities that
Continue reading Safeguarding maritime graves in the Baltic sea: legal challenges and state duties regarding the MS Estonia wreck under international law

On 23 October 2025, the European Commission announced the adoption of the EU’s 19th sanctions package against Russia, significantly intensifying pressure on its war economy. European Commission Key measures include: This package marks a major escalation in the EU’s sanctions regime, expanding the scope far beyond previous energy and finance-measures, and aiming to close existing loopholes and tighten
Continue reading The adoption of the EU’s 19th sanctions package against Russia, significantly intensifying pressure on its war economy. 

The Declaration of the Semicon Coalition marks a decisive moment in Europe’s ongoing effort to consolidate technological sovereignty within the global semiconductor ecosystem. Signed in Brussels on 29 September 2025 by ministers from twenty-seven Member States, the document calls for a “revised and forward-looking EU Chips Act”—a legal and strategic recalibration of the Union’s approach to a sector
Continue reading The Semicon coalition and the legal imperative for a reinforced EU Chips Act

Volkswagen AG’s recent production halt at its Wolfsburg plant has become a symbol of how technological dependencies can turn into strategic vulnerabilities. The issue is not steel, labor, or consumer demand — it is semiconductors. The immediate trigger: Nexperia and the Dutch intervention Nexperia NV, a Dutch semiconductor manufacturer owned by Chinese investors, has been
Continue reading When a single chip can halt a factory: the strategic exposure of Europe’s automotive supply chain

1. Origin and context The term foreign entity of concern emerged within U.S. legislation designed to protect national security, economic interests, and technological supply chains. It appears prominently in: In short, it designates a foreign entity that poses a potential or actual risk to U.S. national or strategic security. 2. Legal definition The definition is detailed but can be summarized
Continue reading Foreign entity of concern (FEOC)

Euro-area evidence from the ECB shows that the 2018 U.S. Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods redirected part of China’s exports towards Europe, consistent with trade diversion. The ECB quantifies non-trivial shifts in export destinations and discusses channels through which an influx of Chinese goods can affect euro-area prices and trade composition. ECB economists, using product-level data, document that
Continue reading Italy’s imports from China after U.S. Section 301 tariffs (2018–2025): evidence, method, and legal–policy context

In recent months China has tightened its export regime for rare earth elements and related technologies, describing these steps as essential to its national security. The change is not a minor adjustment but a structural move that turns China’s dominance in critical minerals into an explicit instrument of geopolitical strategy. In early October 2025, the
Continue reading China turns its rare earth dominance into a national security weapon

Who is Nexperia ? Nexperia is a European semiconductor company based in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.It produces essential electronic components — diodes, transistors, MOSFETs, and logic circuits — used in mobile devices, automobiles, consumer electronics, and industrial systems.The company is controlled by China’s Wingtech Technology, a large tech manufacturer integrated into global supply chains. The origins of the
Continue reading The Nexperia Case: Europe’s New Line in the Silicon Sand

The competition for radio frequencies—especially those enabling mobile communications—has become one of the defining fronts of the new space economy. Control of the spectrum now determines not only who connects the planet, but who shapes the architecture of global information, defense, and digital sovereignty. 1. The Spectrum Deal: Verified Facts In September 2025, SpaceX announced the acquisition of wireless
Continue reading The “Frequency Battle”: How SpaceX’s spectrum deal reshapes the global space economy

Sanctions freeze assets with a heavy hand; court systems often demand money up front just to open the door. What happens when these two logics collide? In C-384/24 (RKDF v Belgium), the Court of Justice (Tenth Chamber) offers a crisp answer: Member State authorities may authorize the release of frozen funds to pay the mandatory fees needed
Continue reading Frozen funds, court doors, and a narrow key: CJEU on paying docket fees under Russia sanctions (C-384/24, 11 September 2025)

The Quantum threat and the urgent need for PQC The coming era of quantum computing threatens to undermine much of the cryptographic infrastructure we rely on today. The asymmetrical algorithms that protect data, communications and digital services may, in time, become vulnerable. In response, both the European Commission and the Italian government have signalled that
Continue reading The Italian and European efforts on the transition to post-quantum cryptography (PQC) for critical infrastructures and digital services.

When Russian drones breached Polish airspace on September 9–10, they carried no warheads—only a message. Stripped of explosives but heavy with intent, these aircraft weren’t instruments of war but tools of psychological warfare, probing for cracks in the Western alliance. The Kremlin’s calculus was transparent: test NATO’s reflexes while America grapples with electoral uncertainty and
Continue reading The night Moscow knocked on NATO’s door

The General Court of the European Union has upheld the EU’s decision to maintain restrictive measures against Positive Group PAO, active in Russia’s IT sector, following its judgment in Case T-573/23. The court dismissed the company’s challenge, reinforcing the legitimacy of the so-called “IT criterion” employed by the Council of the EU. This criterion targets entities operating with FSB-issued or military/arms-related
Continue reading EU General Court endorses sanctions on cybersecurity firm connected to Russian intelligence services

Japan is now pledging that part of its US bound $550 billion trade investment package could help finance a Taiwanese chipmaker, most likely TSMC, to build fabs in America. Why Japan is doing this • Hedging geopolitical risk With TSMC’s fabs concentrated in Taiwan and China’s increasing coercion in the Taiwan Strait, the US wants TSMC onshore. Japan wants
Continue reading Japan Funds TSMC’s U.S. Semiconductor Expansion

Carlo Altomonte, a professor at Bocconi University and Vice President of ISPI, provided a detailed analysis of the tariff agreement between the European Union and the United States, placing it within a broader geopolitical and trade policy context (ISPI YOUTUBE CHANNEL) Here are the key points of his intervention:

While headlines are fixated on tariffs and trade spats, a more dangerous mechanism may be quietly unfolding under Donald Trump’s second presidency. Italian economist and journalist Federico Fubini lays out a disturbing yet well-documented argument: the real price of Trump’s economic strategy may not be paid by Americans, but by Europeans. And it won’t come
Continue reading How Europe may end up paying for America’s debt

Petros C. Mavroidis has identified a major problem in how the WTO handles national security disputes. Countries are increasingly using “national security” as an excuse to break trade rules, and the WTO’s courts don’t know how to respond effectively. When countries claim their actions are necessary for national security, WTO panels are caught in a
Continue reading Petros C. Mavroidis, Litigating National Security in the WTO Era (in: K. Nadakavukaren Schefer, R. Polanco, P. Sauvé (eds), International Economic Law as Symphony, Hart Publishing, 2025, pp. 80–92)

The World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement system is considered a central pillar of the multilateral trading system, providing a structured mechanism for managing disputes among its members. Established in 1995 with the creation of the WTO, the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes (DSU) offers a legal framework for addressing violations
Continue reading The United States and the unraveling of the WTO Appellate Body

Recent analyses published by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) highlight a significant but underappreciated development: the increasing structural role of stablecoins in the U.S. short-term sovereign debt market. As of early 2025, leading stablecoin issuers—most notably Tether and Circle—collectively hold over $200 billion in dollar-denominated assets, with a substantial portion invested in U.S. Treasury bills. During 2024
Continue reading Stablecoins are quietly becoming major players in the U.S. Treasury Market